


War Buddies

by ChavaTulip



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: M/M, Protective Reaper | Gabriel Reyes, Reaper | Gabriel Reyes is a Softie, Reaper76 - Freeform, SEP, SEP era, Young Reaper | Gabriel Reyes, Young Soldier: 76 | Jack Morrison, r76, sort of a sick fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-15
Updated: 2019-09-15
Packaged: 2020-10-18 22:20:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20646599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChavaTulip/pseuds/ChavaTulip
Summary: After going through a set of injections, Gabriel waits on for Jack, hoping that he made it through.





	War Buddies

**Author's Note:**

> Heya. 
> 
> This was an old fic of mine that I posted on Tumblr a while back for a Reaper76 week event and I wanted to post it here, along with putting in some edits. 
> 
> I hope you guys like it!

Gabriel groaned as he felt another wave of nausea hit him, his head throbbing in excruciating pain and worsening as he turned his body on his right side, with the smallest of movement making him lightheaded and out of breath, his heart palpitating harshly against his chest.

He knew it would have been best to remain still and let the adverse effects from the many injections he received earlier that day pass, which would lessen the agony he was in. But, even with how exhausted he was, Gabriel needed to assure himself on a worrying suspicion that nagged at him for what felt like hours. All he hoped, for now, was that the said suspicion had not become a reality.

“Thank God,” Gabriel murmured gruffly, returning to a lying position on his back once he caught sight of a familiar blonde man resting on the medical bed next to his own, relieved that Jack had made it through the numerous injections, unlike the other soldiers that have died while participating in the program. Hopefully, in a few weeks, it would not be long until Gabriel and Jack were home free from this torture. And, though freedom would be brief before the two would head into the battlefield, it was all worth it.

All that Gabriel hoped, for now, was that they would make it through the rest of the program unscathed.

Hearing a weak sigh next to him, Gabriel turned his head quickly, shoving away the dizziness that came after.

“Mornin’, boy scout,” Gabriel teased, earning him a groan of annoyance from Jack. “Having fun?”

“As fun as yesterday when they dosed me up with however many shots I got to the point that I passed out?” Jack asked sarcastically, followed by a laugh riddled with exhaustion. “Definitely.”

Gabriel could not help but let out a laugh as well. “Oh, really?”

“Yeah, really.” When Jack finally mustered the strength in turning his head to face him, Gabriel felt his heart aching as he examined the other man’s features.

Of all his time getting to know Jack and developing a friendship with him, Gabriel never witnessed Jack look sickly. Of course, that was to be expected while in this program. Moreover, though Gabriel was holding up fine, he did not look so hot himself, with his skin feeling as if it were sizzling in an oven.

However, to Gabriel’s horror, Jack appeared to be near his deathbed--ghost pale skin, eyes sunken and littered with dark bags underneath them, hair greasy and having lost its healthy sheen, and cheeks no longer retaining their fullness. The only saving graces that Gabriel found were Jack’s warm smile, which surprised Gabriel with how ill he appeared, and Jack's sky-blue eyes that were somehow still bright and filled with life.

Even though there were good signs of Jack pulling through, they did not outweigh the bad signs that seemed to be stacked against him.

With the odds of Jack not seeing the light of day, the realization of possibly losing his friend at any moment struck Gabriel to the core.

This situation was the last thing he wanted.

But, with multiple subjects having lost their lives during the program, Gabriel knew better than to ignore the high chance that Jack may be one of the many people lost due to being in the SEP.

With only God on his side in hopes that Jack made it through, Gabriel returned Jack’s warm smile with his own, trying to hide the guilt that steadily ate at him, wanting to assure Jack that everything was going to be alright. Whether that was true or not, Gabriel did not know.

“You look awful,” Gabriel finally choked out, his smile unwavering in the anticipation that Jack would see it as a form of teasing and laugh, which is what quickly happened after a soft chuckle escaped from Jack, making Gabriel relaxed as Jack’s laughter rang throughout the room.

“You don’t look so hot either, Gabe,” Jack retorted, his smile turning into a slight smirk before quickly reverting to a seemingly innocent smile.

“Hey, I caught that, boy scout,” Gabriel replied after catching Jack's smirk, earning him another laugh from the other man.

When the laughter had died down once more, both men took in a calming breath and stared at one another in silence, distracting the two from the chaos that surrounded them and the pain that rattled both men to the core. Not like they had a choice, but they did not mind.

“Jack.” Breaking the silence after catching Jack beginning to fall asleep, Gabriel shifted his body so that he would lie on his stomach and raised his left arm towards Jack.

Without a second thought, Jack reached for Gabriel, his arm shaking as he lifted it upward and towards the man beside him.

Though Jack’s movement was excruciatingly slow, Gabriel waited patiently until the blonde man’s trembling fingers rested onto his own. Gabriel then reached further and took Jack’s hand, squeezing it tenderly in his hold.

Lifting his head to face Jack, Gabriel’s dark-brown eyes stared at him with an intensity that caught Jack off guard. It was not out of anger when compared to their first few encounters with one another, nor of calculation seen during the several training simulations that both men had been put through before joining the program.

Unlike those situations, the intensity in Gabriel's eyes was a mixture of determination, fear, and regret, which were pulled together by an eerie calmness that radiated from him.

“You’re going to make this through, Jack,” Gabriel began, not letting down the intensity in his eyes. “I swear on my own life you will.”

“Gabriel-.”

“Hey,” Gabriel hurriedly cut Jack off, dark irises not once faltering away from Jack’s gaze. “What did I just say?”

Letting out a sigh of defeat, Jack returned his head to facing upward, knowing the better option was to not protest. Even if he did, it would not lead to anything dramatic, just a stare-off between the two men until one of them relented. And, for the most part, Gabriel was always the winner in these stare-offs.

Being met with silence, Gabriel took that as an answer. “That’s what I thought.”

Squeezing Jack’s hand once again, Gabriel huffed before hiding his face against his pillow, thinking over his words and praying them to be true.

Though, one thing was clear: if Jack died, someone was going to pay.


End file.
